In Defense of Dylan's Chrysler Commercial

Hey, I just saw Bob Dylan's Super Bowl Chrysler commercial.  And you know what?  I like it.

I also don't get what the criticism and fuss is about.  Dylan's voice sounds great, speaking.  The images are evocative.  And so are the words.

They're also true.  Automobiles are indeed a quintessentially American invention, which we gave to the rest of the world.  That's certainly not true of beer, which was invented 500 years or more before America even existed.   And who cares about the other products?  And why shouldn't we take pride in this American invention that rules the world - or, at least, makes traveling much easier?

Don't get me wrong.  I actually like trains much better than cars - mainly because I can write and sleep on the train, which I can't do when I'm driving.  But I like the automobile, too, and why shouldn't it be celebrated?

Dylan has received criticism from progressives, along the lines that somehow this commercial is glorifying capitalism.   Well, I'm usually a progressive, too, but I have no brief against capitalism - I just want the government to give help to people who need it, including medical care, so they can participate more fully in our capitalist society, by having more money to put in the economy.  That's what Obama says he wants, too, and he's right.

And there's nothing in the commercial about the sale of automobiles anyway.  It's a testament to the automobile and what's it's given to our culture.  You can enjoy the commercial and take the subway or the train.

Which is exactly what I'd do if I didn't have a car.

Boardwalk Empire 3.2: Gasoline and the White Rock Girl

Boardwalk Empire has done a great job portraying the new media of the early 1920s - such as boxing matches broadcast on radio.  In episode 3.2, the plot hinges on the new transportation tech of that era - in particular, trucks, which Nucky uses to transport booze from Atlantic City to New York, and their dependence on gas.

There just weren't that many gas stations around back then.  And the station in fictional Tabor Heights has the last gas until the New York area.  This gives Rosetti a bright idea - take over the gas station, and use it to hold up Nucky's shipment to Rothstein, which can't get all the way from AC to NYC without that refill.  The plan works.  As is still the case in our world, control the energy and you can control the world - or at least, try to.

Meanwhile, in New York City, Nucky's finding true love - or at least true lust - with the beautiful Billie.  When a radiator breaks down, and Billie, naked, gets on the floor and leans over in an attempt to fix it, Nucky says she looks like the White Rock girl.  As indeed she does - I remember looking at the White Rock girl myself on soda bottles back as kid in the 1950s, and thinking all kinds of things.  But nothing quite as fine as Billie.

Boardwalk Empire is off to a good start this year.   No Jimmy, no Manny, but lots other good, gangsterly forces at play - including the return of Nucky's brother, whose ultimate loyalty is still, as ever, in question.

See also Boardwalk Empire 3.1: Happy News Year 1923

And see also Boardwalk Empire 2.1: Politics in an Age Before YouTube  ... Boardwalk Empire 2.2: The Woman Behind the Throne ... Boardwalk Empire 2.3: Frankenstein and Victrola ... Boardwalk Empire 2.4: Nearly Flagrante Delicto ... Boardwalk Empire 2.5: Richard's Story ... Boardwalk Empire 2.6: Owen and Other Bad News for Nucky ... Boardwalk Empire 2.7: Shot in the Hand  ... Boardwalk Empire 2.8: Pups with Fangs ... Boardwalk Empire 2.9: Ireland, Radio, Polio ... Boardwalk Empire 2.10: Double Shot ... Boardwalk Empire 2.11: Gillian and Jimmy  ... Boardwalk Empire Season 2 Finale: Stunner!

And see also Boardwalk Emipre on HBO ... Boardwalk Empire 1.2: Lines and Centers Power ... Boardwalk Empire 1.10: Arnold Rothstein, Media Theorist  ... Season One Finale of Boardwalk Empire

"As a genre-bending blend of police procedural and science fiction, The Silk Code delivers on its promises." -- Gerald Jonas, The New York Times Book Review

Give the Auto Companies the Loans - But with Strings that Help All Americans

I don't like rewarding the dumb and greedy policies of the big auto companies - for example, churning out huge numbers of gas-guzzling SUVs, when it was clear Americans were wisely getting tired of them - but, as many people have noted, letting the big three auto companies go under would put millions of Americans out of work, with destructive ripple effects all through the economy.

I thus think our government has no choice but to lend the auto companies the billions they need to stay in business, but with the following strings, to make sure the bailout helps those who deserve the help (the American people) and not those who don't (present management).

1. Fire the top management, with no golden parachutes.

2. Their replacements should make at most 1/10 of the current top exec salaries (which are in the multi-millions of dollars).

3. Lower the price of new autos to consumers, by at least 20-percent.

4. Provide tax credits for purchase of all new autos, which would offset state sales taxes. (Or, if all the states are willing to play ball, do away with the state sales taxes on autos, period.)

4. Insist on manufacture of more hybrids, and get them out to consumers more quickly.

I'm sure there could be other strings, and the ones above could be more effectively formulated. But you get the picture: Give the loans to the auto companies, but make sure the American people, not the execs who got us into this mess, truly benefit.